Foodservice Logistics

Delivered August 28th, 2019. Contributors: james O. and

Foodservice Logistics: Part I

The top five third-party logistics companies for the foodservice market in the US are C.H. Robinson, XPO Logistics, J.B. Hunt, Kuehne + Nagel (The Americas), and Coyote Logistics. Further, details about these companies have been entered in rows 2-6, columns A to G of the attached spreadsheet.

TOP 3PL COMPANIES FOR THE FOOD SERVICE

C.H. Robinson, XPO Logistics, J.B. Hunt, Kuehne + Nagel (The Americas), and Coyote Logistics are the top 5 third-party logistics companies operating in the foodservice market in the United States.

RESEARCH STRATEGY

The research team leveraged the resources of Armstrong & Associates, Inc. (A&A) and Orderhive to determine the top 5 logistics companies for the foodservice market. Armstrong & Associates, Inc. is a research organization that offers third-party logistics provider (3PL) market research and consulting information. A&A’s market research is “frequently cited in media articles, publications, and securities filings.” The organization lists the top 50 U.S. third-party logistics providers (3PLs) annually based on gross logistics revenue in United States dollars. Orderhive develops software for the logistics industry, as well as providing consulting services. They have researched the food industry in the US and developed a list of the top 3PL companies that serve the sector in the country. We paired A&A's 2018 rank with Orderhive's to generate the top 5 logistics (3PL) technology solutions for the foodservice market. First, the team matched the companies in the A&A's list with Orderhive's list of "top 3PL companies for Food and Beverages sector" to determine the various industries served, giving priority to those serving the food sector. Next, we ranked them by gross logistic revenues to select the top five.

To identify notable clients for the organizations identified in rows 2-6 of the attached spreadsheet, the research team combed their official websites in search of the customer tab, or alternative, consumer testimonials, and use cases that should ordinarily reveal some companies they serve in the food sector. We found that for some like C.H. Robinson, rather than disclosing the names of organizations giving testimonies, they used alias names, 'Agriculture Services Company' or 'Food and Beverage Company,' for example.

Next, we examined credible publications for articles surrounding any partnerships between the top logistics solutions with organizations in the foodservice industry. We aimed to trace the existence of such partnerships and if they resulted from or led to the companies becoming clients of the top logistics firms. Although such collaborations exist, we could not identify a single client organization. For example, Food Business News reports a partnership between Nestlé and XPO Logistics that's meant to introduce a digital warehouse of the future. However, there's no evidence that Nestle uses the latter for logistics.

We also searched through review sites such as Featured Customers for any customer reviews about the use of the 3PLs for food logistics. The idea was to trace if these customers have mentioned the organizations they work for while giving their views/opinions. Through this strategy, the research team managed to identify two notable clients for C.H. Robinson exclusively.

Part

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Part

02

Foodservice Logistics: Part II

The next top five third-party logistics companies for the foodservice market in the US are Ryder Supply Chain Solutions, Burris Logistics, Schneider Logistics & Dedicated, Penske Logistics, and NFI Industries. Further, details about these companies have been entered in rows 7-11, columns A to G of the attached spreadsheet.

RESEARCH STRATEGY

The research team leveraged the resources of Armstrong & Associates, Inc. (A&A) and Orderhive to determine the next top five logistics companies for the foodservice market. Armstrong & Associates, Inc. is a research organization that offers third-party logistics provider (3PL) market research and consulting information. A&A’s market research is “frequently cited in media articles, publications, and securities filings.” The organization lists the top 50 U.S. third-party logistics providers (3PLs) annually based on gross logistics revenue in United States dollars. Orderhive develops software for the logistics industry, as well as providing consulting services. They have researched the food industry in the US and developed a list of the top 3PL companies that serve the sector in the country. We paired A&A's 2018 rank with Orderhive's to generate the top 5 logistics (3PL) technology solutions for the foodservice market. First, the team matched the companies in the A&A's list with Orderhive's list of "top 3PL companies for Food and Beverages sector" to determine the various industries served, giving priority to those serving the food sector. Next, we ranked them by gross logistic revenues to select the next top five.

To identify notable clients for the organizations identified in rows 7-11 of the attached spreadsheet, the research team combed their official websites in search of the customer tab, or alternative, consumer testimonials, and use cases that should ordinarily reveal some companies they serve in the food sector. We found that for some like Schneider Logistics & Dedicated, rather than disclosing the names of organizations giving testimonies, they used alias names, 'Agriculture Services Company' or 'Food and Beverage Company,' for example.

Next, we examined credible publications such as Food Logistics magazine for articles surrounding any partnerships between the top logistics solutions with organizations in the foodservice industry. We aimed to trace the existence of such partnerships and if they resulted from or led to the companies becoming clients of the top logistics firms. Unfortunately, we could not locate such collaborations nor establish a single client organization. We did find, however, that Penske Logistics was recently recognized as the leading food and beverage service partner.

We also searched through review sites for any customer reviews about the use of the top 3PLs for food logistics. The idea was to trace if these customers have mentioned the organizations they work for while giving their views/opinions. Unfortunately, Schneider Logistics & Dedicated, Penske Logistics, and NFI Industries do not have profiles created on consumer review sites such as Featured Customers.